A 3D reconstruction of plagioclase crystals in a synthetic basalt
-
Stéphanie Duchêne
,
Elsa Pupier
Abstract
The three-dimensional shapes of plagioclase crystals in an experimentally cooled basaltic liquid have been reconstructed, with the aim of (1) better understanding crystal growth processes and the diversity of crystal shapes produced during cooling, and (2) to assess the validity of crystal-size distributions (CSDs) derived from 2D sections. The experimental charge was cooled from above the liquidus (~1175 °C) at a rate of 0.2 °C/h. It contained ~40% crystals at the quenching temperature of ~1120 °C. To quantify the crystals in 3D, photographs of a series of 2D-polished sections were taken under an optical microscope using reflected light. Interpolation and 3D reconstruction of 261 individual crystals was performed using the gOcad geomodeling software, and their short (S), intermediate (I), and long (L) dimensions were measured. Plagioclase crystals are generally tabular, with a nearly constant I/L ratio. On the other hand, S/I and S/L shape factors are more variable, although both are found to be correlated with length of the S axis. These observations are believed to result either from crystal agglomeration and attachment, preferentially along (010) faces, or from varying thermodynamic or kinetic conditions during cooling. Growth rates along the S, I, and L axes have been calculated from the size of the largest crystals and vary from 1.5 × 10-10 to 5.1 × 10-10 and 7.2 × 10-10 m/s, respectively. The CSDs for the maximal length and short axes of 3D crystals are presented and compared with CSDs obtained from 2D sections. Published corrections for cutting effects are found to be generally very satisfactory.
© 2015 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- The crystal structure of vurroite, Pb20Sn2(Bi,As)22S54Cl6: OD-character, polytypism, twinning, and modular description
- Mineralogy of the Paso Robles soils on Mars
- Dingdaohengite-(Ce) from the Bayan Obo REE-Nb-Fe Mine, China: Both a true polymorph of perrierite-(Ce) and a titanic analog at the C1 site of chevkinite subgroup
- Thermal equation of state of CaGeO3 perovskite
- Quantitative absorbance spectroscopy with unpolarized light: Part I. Physical and mathematical development
- Quantitative absorbance spectroscopy with unpolarized light: Part II. Experimental evaluation and development of a protocol for quantitative analysis of mineral IR spectra
- Oxide-melt solution calorimetry of selenides: Enthalpy of formation of zinc, cadmium, and lead selenide
- Precise dating of biotite in distal volcanic ash: Isolating subtle alteration using 40Ar/39Ar laser incremental heating and electron microprobe techniques
- Rationale for the existence of four- and eight-reversals in antigorite
- Structural relaxation around substitutional Cr3+ in pyrope garnet
- Metasomatic thorite and uraninite inclusions in xenotime and monazite from granitic pegmatites, Hidra anorthosite massif, southwestern Norway: Mechanics and fluid chemistry
- Interlayer potassium and its neighboring atoms in micas: Crystal-chemical modeling and XANES spectroscopy
- Effect of chemical environment on the hydrogen-related defect chemistry in wadsleyite
- Fracture toughness, hardness, and elastic modulus of kyanite investigated by a depth-sensing indentation technique
- Crystal chemistry of the natrojarosite-jarosite and natrojarosite-hydronium jarosite solid-solution series: A synthetic study with full Fe site occupancy
- A new experimental thin film approach to study mobility and partitioning of elements in grain boundaries: Fe-Mg exchange between olivines mediated by transport through an inert grain boundary
- Titanium as a cathodoluminescence activator in alkali feldspars
- Biogenic vs. abiogenic magnetite nanoparticles: A XMCD study
- Solubility of andradite, Ca3Fe2Si3O12, in a 10 mol% NaCl solution at 800 °C and 10 kbar: Implications for the metasomatic origin of grandite garnet in calc-silicate granulites
- A 3D reconstruction of plagioclase crystals in a synthetic basalt
- Rudashevskyite, the Fe-dominant analogue of sphalerite, a new mineral: Description and crystal structure
- Birchite, a new mineral from Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia: Description and structure refinement
- Crystal structure of synthetic Al4B2O9: A member of the mullite family closely related to boralsilite
- Interaction of gypsum with As(V)-bearing aqueous solutions: Surface precipitation of guerinite, sainfeldite, and Ca2NaH(AsO4)2·6H2O, a synthetic arsenate
- Jahnsite-(NaFeMg), a new mineral from the Tip Top mine, Custer County, South Dakota: Description and crystal structure
- Evidence for anomalously large degree of polymerization in Mg2SiO4 glass and melt
- Theoretical infrared absorption coefficient of OH groups in minerals
Articles in the same Issue
- The crystal structure of vurroite, Pb20Sn2(Bi,As)22S54Cl6: OD-character, polytypism, twinning, and modular description
- Mineralogy of the Paso Robles soils on Mars
- Dingdaohengite-(Ce) from the Bayan Obo REE-Nb-Fe Mine, China: Both a true polymorph of perrierite-(Ce) and a titanic analog at the C1 site of chevkinite subgroup
- Thermal equation of state of CaGeO3 perovskite
- Quantitative absorbance spectroscopy with unpolarized light: Part I. Physical and mathematical development
- Quantitative absorbance spectroscopy with unpolarized light: Part II. Experimental evaluation and development of a protocol for quantitative analysis of mineral IR spectra
- Oxide-melt solution calorimetry of selenides: Enthalpy of formation of zinc, cadmium, and lead selenide
- Precise dating of biotite in distal volcanic ash: Isolating subtle alteration using 40Ar/39Ar laser incremental heating and electron microprobe techniques
- Rationale for the existence of four- and eight-reversals in antigorite
- Structural relaxation around substitutional Cr3+ in pyrope garnet
- Metasomatic thorite and uraninite inclusions in xenotime and monazite from granitic pegmatites, Hidra anorthosite massif, southwestern Norway: Mechanics and fluid chemistry
- Interlayer potassium and its neighboring atoms in micas: Crystal-chemical modeling and XANES spectroscopy
- Effect of chemical environment on the hydrogen-related defect chemistry in wadsleyite
- Fracture toughness, hardness, and elastic modulus of kyanite investigated by a depth-sensing indentation technique
- Crystal chemistry of the natrojarosite-jarosite and natrojarosite-hydronium jarosite solid-solution series: A synthetic study with full Fe site occupancy
- A new experimental thin film approach to study mobility and partitioning of elements in grain boundaries: Fe-Mg exchange between olivines mediated by transport through an inert grain boundary
- Titanium as a cathodoluminescence activator in alkali feldspars
- Biogenic vs. abiogenic magnetite nanoparticles: A XMCD study
- Solubility of andradite, Ca3Fe2Si3O12, in a 10 mol% NaCl solution at 800 °C and 10 kbar: Implications for the metasomatic origin of grandite garnet in calc-silicate granulites
- A 3D reconstruction of plagioclase crystals in a synthetic basalt
- Rudashevskyite, the Fe-dominant analogue of sphalerite, a new mineral: Description and crystal structure
- Birchite, a new mineral from Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia: Description and structure refinement
- Crystal structure of synthetic Al4B2O9: A member of the mullite family closely related to boralsilite
- Interaction of gypsum with As(V)-bearing aqueous solutions: Surface precipitation of guerinite, sainfeldite, and Ca2NaH(AsO4)2·6H2O, a synthetic arsenate
- Jahnsite-(NaFeMg), a new mineral from the Tip Top mine, Custer County, South Dakota: Description and crystal structure
- Evidence for anomalously large degree of polymerization in Mg2SiO4 glass and melt
- Theoretical infrared absorption coefficient of OH groups in minerals
